Apples and Roses
by Aruna Hart
Summary: Rose is trapped in the parallel universe, AKA Pete's World and she can't stop thinking about the Doctor.
1. Chapter 1

Hands clasped tightly in her lap, Rose Tyler tried to ignore the necking couple in front of her. It was reasons like this why she usually avoided public transportation. But one of the belts in her car had broken and the blonde was left with little choice.

Her parents, Mickey, or any one of the staff at the new Torchwood would have gladly given her a ride to the shop, but Rose refused to ask. She was distancing herself. The Doctor had been gone for over two years now, but she could still feel him near. Her work on the dimension cannon was progressing, but not as quickly as she'd hoped. However, she knew that one day it would bring them together again and she would never return to this universe. So, she began separating herself from the world to which she had never really belonged.

The truth had hit Rose hard. She had always longed for her father and the Doctor had nearly lost his life twice (three times if you included his actually being eaten alive by the hideous creatures attacking the church when she first met Pete). She had rebelled against his warning when they entered Pete's World and it had changed everything. If only she had listened then, she might still be with the Doctor now. She had spent so much time with the Doctor trying to get the past back that she had lost the future.

A small tear welled in the corner of her eye as she spied yet another couple strolling down the sidewalk hand in hand. If she had realized what today was she would have stayed home.

The first Valentine's Day she'd spent here, Rose still hadn't been to the beach yet. She spent her days waiting. The Doctor had said it was impossible to come back, but Rose couldn't accept the fact that he was lost to her forever. She was his pink and yellow girl. He would come with his blue box and it's raspy wheezing would be like the music of the saints.

He would take her away and mutter into her neck "I couldn't leave you. I love you" while he held her just like he had when they thought they'd lost each other to the black hole at the impossible planet.

For a year Rose waited until she'd heard him calling to her in the dreams. Hope swelled in her chest. The chest that after he'd said goodbye on the beach felt hollow as it was crushed with agony. The Doctor had given up. She could see the pain in his eyes. He was hurting and alone. She had promised that they would always be together but it was a lie.

Now, another year had passed since that fateful day. Her parents had welcomed a son named Anthony John Tyler, Tony for short. John was of course for the Doctor.

Rose loved her baby brother. However, she was saddened by his arrival. She knew now that if she ever did find the Doctor she'd be the only one making the return trip. Her mother would remain with the baby and Pete. Rose was satisfied with that. Her mother would have the family she'd always wanted and Rose would have the Doctor. Still the thought of never seeing them again was bothersome.

The day at the beach had sealed her fate. She was no longer going to sit and wait for the doctor to come and find her. He loved her, of that there was no doubt. However, he's been through so much in his long life that he couldn't bear the thought of inflicting more damage to the universe. He had already annihilated his own planet, any more destruction by his hand and he feared what he might become.

Rose on the other hand had no qualms about tearing the universe apart in search of her love. She made her decision before leaving the cold sand. On the long drive back to London, she sat in the back of the Jeep plotting her next moves.

A simple house away from the mansion and closer to Cardiff became her home. They had visited that city several times because there was a rift. Sure, it wasn't the same rift, but Rose had an inkling that rifts ran through all the parallel universes, linking them to one central point. She scouted out the area and discovered an abandoned structure directly below the rift. Her plan slowly began coming together as she restructured Torchwood for her own purpose. The staff and technology grew. Almost a year into the project she was closer than ever to finding the Doctor.

But today was still sucked.

At long last, the bus neared her road and Rose gratefully escaped the oblivious snogging couple. She walked the last few blocks to her living quarters as she had trained herself to think of the house. She refused to call it home. Her home was on the Tardis.

A small basket sat on the front step. Rose picked it up with more force than intended. She sliced open the box and pulled out a fruit basket wrapped in pink and red plastic.

The red everyone else was viewing that day was slightly different than the red Rose was currently seeing. Anger welled inside her involuntary. She was sick to death of the hearts and messages of love everywhere. Candy and small Valentine's gifts had been given at the office. Rose had trashed the presents into the closest bin, which was what she intended to do with this latest offensive object.

As she picked up the basket ready to heave it through the window, a not fluttered to the floor. She unceremoniously dropped it on the table and quickly scanned the small writing.

Mickey. He should have known better. In all his time with the Doctor and Rose, Mickey the Idiot had learned one thing: he always came second. Now that first place wasn't there, the once lover was trying to ease back into the lead position.

No chocolates or sweets, he said. This is something that will keep you going.

Rose gave the basket an evil eye. She ripped the plastic off to see what exactly he had ordered. If he wanted to keep her going he should have sent her about two tons of coffee beans.

The first fruit that caught her eye were the yellowish-green pears. She gave a small chuckle remembering a rant the Doctor had spewed out when she'd given him the evidently hideous produce. She hadn't eaten one since, and these would be no exception.

A cluster of grapes reminded her of a similar fruit she'd seen at the market on god-knows which planet. The Doctor had warned her he didn't know what it might do. She had tasted one anyway. They'd spent hours after that hunting the silvery bushes in the nearby hills to find the antidote for Rose's unstoppable laughter.

Red strawberries were placed between the grapes. Memories of them nibbling on the fruit while sitting on the Doctor's coat in the apple-grass flooded her.

Absentmindedly, Rose picked up an actual apple from the basket. It took her a few minutes of staring at the fruit to realize that there was no fond memory of the Doctor attached to it. She scowled at the red sphere. There was a nagging at the door to her mind. Something she should remember, but that just wouldn't surface. Suddenly it hit her. The apple dropped to the floor and Rose stared at her hand as if the fruit had scorched her skin.

It was an old saying, tucked away and forgotten, replaced by the sheer magnificence of the Doctor and Tardis. But know, the words were taunting her, chanting in her mind over and over. Her breathing became labored and her chest felt tight.

An apple a day…keeps the Doctor away.

An apple a day… keeps the Doctor away.

AN APPLE A DAYKEEPS THE DOCTOR AWAY!

Rose jumped to her feet. Opening the back door, she kicked the apple into the yard. Turning back to the basket, she threw it after the apple. It was only then that she truly looked around her kitchen for the first time. She'd been so busy setting up Torchwood that her mother had arranged and decorated Rose's house herself.

Jackie had made an error in the theme of the kitchen. Apples. The small fruit was on the curtains, the rugs, the dishes, the towels… Rose franticly ripped the drapes from their rods. The rugs and towels soon followed. The pile in the yard grew to a sizeable heap.

Ever since New Earth, Rose had loved the smell of apples. Now, apple scented candles and sprays found themselves victims of the purge. Apple cake mixes, apple juice, and applesauce were added to the mound as the distraught woman searched the house for any trace of the food. After more diligent seeking, a bra, three pair of underwear, and a sweatshirt made their way into the growing throng.

Assured that nothing was left, Rose took a can of gasoline, poured it over the heap, and tossed in a match. Exhausted, she collapsed on her knees too close to the flames. Smoke blew into her face, making her choke. The sweet smell of apples and cinnamon rose toward the sky like an offering.

'A sweet smelling sacrifice,' Rose thought. 'A sacrifice for my Doctor.' She looked upward. She had never been a religious person, but at that moment, she prayed to every god in existence. "Please!" It was short and simple and she knew it would be understood. Tears poured down her face.

She tried to shrug off the hands pulling her away from the inferno. She needed to be there to see it finish. As if the destruction would miraculously make the Doctor appear.

A deep voice told her he was the doctor, but when he came into focus she knew he was lying. He father was next to the man, shaking his head and whispering something into the liar's ear. Rose took advantage of this and jerked free, heading back towards the fire. A small rag covered her face, and as she drifted into the darkness she kept muttering his name over and over.

Later, they told her the neighbor's had called the fire department because of the smoke. The chief was a friend of Pete's and had alerted her father who had arrived shortly after the rescue squad. She had nearly killed herself by inhaling too much smoke. A medical doctor who lived nearby had saved her life by knowing exactly what to do at the scene.

She spent a week in the hospital. Jackie never left her side. "I should have realized when I was decorating," was all her mother said.

The hospital wanted to give her a psych evaluation, but Rose refused. She knew she was crazy. Love made people that way and she was incurable.

And as long as she lived she would never eat another apple.


	2. Chapter 2

She found him, lost him, got him back, and lost him again all within hours. Her hard work gone to waste as she watched the Tardis vanish into the unknown on a cold beach in Norway. The other Doctor took her hand and held it tight. Rose wasn't sure how she felt. Yes, it was the doctor, but not HER doctor. The man she'd tried so hard to save was gone and all that remained was his shadow.

The dreams of them exploring the universe together were lost. Tears filled her eyes. He knew what she was thinking. Reaching down he whispered in her ear. "I'll find a way to get you back to him. He was wrong in leaving you here. I may have been born in battle, but he is darker than I ever could be. He needs you."

It was so…him. Rose turned fiercely. Her decision was final. "But I need you." That one sentence was all it took. Her searching was over. The trio walked to the nearest town where they called Pete to come and get them. It was no question of where the Doctor would stay. He and Rose took their small Tardis bulb and settled into a quiet life at her house.

Torchwood still remained, but Rose's place was not there anymore. Together, she and the Doctor nurtured the growth of the new Tardis from their basement.

The massive charcoal pit in the backyard from Rose's anti-apple bonfire still scarred the landscape. The Doctor didn't question it, and Rose saw no need to tell him. Her hands had healed flawlessly from the burns and she wanted to forget the torment being separated from him had caused her.

It wasn't long however before the Doctor discovered how charcoal pit had come to be in that place. He had stopped at a fruit stand on his way home from the small school where he was teaching until the Tardis was ready. The bright red fruit seemed to be calling his name. A few pounds shorter and a dozen apple later her arrived him and went to the kitchen.

Rose entered the room a little while later and froze. Her Doctor sat at the table calmly surrounded by red peels chomping away at the juicy white fruit. She gasped and tore the apple from his hands. Throwing the door wide she tossed the fruit towards the burnt ground. The rest of the offending fruit soon followed as the Doctor watched his snack helplessly.

"What?" he muttered in his most adorable confused voice, "What?"

"There are no apples at this house," Rose stated firmly and left the room.

The Doctor sat back unsure of had just happened. Had he missed something? Rose had always liked apples before. She'd loved the apple-grass. He smiled remembering their first kiss. Well…technically it was Cassandra and him, but it was still Rose's lips that she had possessed.

He shook his head to refocus. What could have possibly happened to make his sweet smelling Rose hate apples? They were the healthiest fruit around. Hell, there was even an Earth saying about them that had been around for ages. 'An apple a day…' the Doctor froze as he remembered how that saying ended. 'Keeps the doctor away.'

It was simply superstitious but so human. He ran to the living room where Rose was curled up on the couch and pulled her into his arms.

"When I thought I'd lost you," he began, "I went to the Planet Redumta. They have the biggest floral valleys in the universe there. I was so angry and depressed about losing you that I burned every last field of roses they had. I thought if I couldn't have my rose that no one else should one either."

Rose looked at him through tear-filled eyes. She didn't need to ask, she knew he had figured out her apple hatred. "And did it work?"

"No. People still found roses and I was left with fields of ashes and a longing for you. I love you Rose Tyler and you'll always be a part of me."

Rose kissed him. It was same back on the beach. She couldn't stop herself when she year those three words fall from his lips.

"We'll always be together."

"In our Tardis, flying across the sky.


	3. Chapter 3

It felt right to have them cremated Jackie Tyler decided in the end. It had been one run too many. They had caught a simple bug that neither her daughter nor the doctor could escape from. He'd brought her back to Earth, carrying her body limply his legs barely steady enough to hold himself up.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he muttered over and over through his delirium. Jackie couldn't help but feel a slight resentment towards him. Had he never stolen her daughter in the first place, Rose wouldn't have ever been exposed to this unearthly virus.

But in the end, Jackie knew that the Doctor loved Rose. He'd had done anything and everything for her daughter. In his eyes, there was no one but Rose. She was his world.

When Rose's lifeless body had been carried in his arms, the Doctor seemed to be lifeless as well. The torchwood doctors tried all they could, but Jackie could have told them it was useless. The Doctor didn't want to get better. His blood may be pumping through his body at the moment, but his heart had stopped the moment Rose's had.

Less than one day separated them in death.

Some wanted to examine the bodies, study the virus and its effects. Potential for new medical breakthroughs they claimed. Others wanted to dissect the Timelord and study his physiology. Jackie was having none of it. Pete agreed. They quickly took control over their daughter and son-in-law's fate.

A small memorial service was held where the ashes of the star-crossed lovers were scattered to the wind, forever traveling across the universe. A small tear escaped Jackie's eye. She had cried until she felt like she could cry no more and yet, there was this one tear left.

It rolled down her cheek and landed with a soft thud into the ashes as they blew into the breeze. At that moment, Jackie swore she could smell apples and roses as Rose and the Doctor's laughter echoed across the sky.

Amid the apples, roses, and ashes she knew everything would be okay.


End file.
